The ledger. [volume] (Gaffney City, S.C.) 1896-1907, October 28, 1904, Image 1
I
.-\i u-
THE LARGEST CIRCULATION
of Any Newspaper in the
Fifth Congressional
District, of S. C.
EVERY ONE PAID IN ADVANCE
The Ledger.
SEMI-WEEKLY .-PUBLISHED TUESDAY AND IBIDAY.
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of Every Advertiser Who
Uses the Columns of
This Paper.
BEST ADVERTISING MEDIUM.
A Newspaper In All that the Word impllee and Devoted to tho Boot intereete of the People of Cherokee County.
ESTABLISHED FEB. 18, 1894.
GAFFNEY, 8. C., FRIDAY, OCTOBER 28, 1904.
$1.00 A YEAR.
SENATOR TILLMAN
ON THE DISPENSARY.
DEFENDS HIS PET IN A LONG
SPEECH.
Arguments Against the System by
Rev. F. C. Hickson, Who Replied
to the Senator, and by W. S. Hall.
We believe in “totin’ ’’ fair. We
promised Senator Tillman to publish
the stenographic report of his speech
delivered here Saturday. We did not,
however, presume for a moment that
he wanted us to print anything other
than what he said. He left here Sat
urday at 2:48, went to Spartanburg
and remained in that city until 10
o’clock Sunday morning. During that
time he edited his speech, as the
changes in the stenographer s copy
will show. Anyone who doubts this
statement can call at The Ledger of
fice, examine the copy and verify
this statement. We are printing it as
he changed it. In changing it he left
off some of the utterances that were
calculated to give offense. This is
another evidence of his unwillingness
to be fair in the discussion of the dis
pensary system.—Ed. Ledger.
Tillman Introduced.
Senator Tillman was introduced by
Mr. Cutler as follows:
Fellow citizens, I have been re
quested in the absence of the county
chairman to introduce the speaker on
this occasion. He needs no introduc
tion at my hands and you are aware
of the subject that he will discuss, so
without an attempt to make a speech
on this subject, I now present to you
Hon. B. R. Tillman, of South Caro
lina.
Senator Tillman’s Speech.
Mr. Tillman spoke as follows:
Fellow citizens: Since I have been
In your midst, having arrived yester
day afternoon, my memory has trav
elled back to the various times when
L have had the pleasure of meeting
the people of what is now Cherokee
county, and it has occurred to me
that not knowing very much of you
personally, and without being able to
explain why, that there is something,
I do not know what, which makes my
visits to Gaffney have the appearance
of mile stones along my career, along
tfie road that I have travelled as a
public man. My first appearance
among you was in October, 1890,
when I was invited here as the Demo
cratic candidate for governor to make
a speech. It was the only place in
the St&te that wanted to hear any
thing more after I had stumped the
entire State during the preceding
summer, and it was the only speech
I made as Democratic nominee for
governor. I was elected of course.
The next time I appeared here, If I
remember aright, was in December or
January; December f think it was,
1896, when you were agitating and
discussing the subject of cutting off
a new county. I come this time un
der somewhat similar circumstances.
Then it was in response to an invita
tion signed by many men I do not
know, requesting me to counsel with
you as to the advantages and disad
vantages of cutting yourselves loose
from York, Union and Spartanburg
and setting up housekeeping on your
own hook. The next time I came was
when I was canvassing without oppo
sition, but simply in the ordinary
course of politics, going around to
pay my respects to those of you who
had supported me in 1900. The next
time when I appeared here was in
answer to a similar invitation to meet
my then colleague in the joint dis
cussion of the program he had mapped
out of leading a large number of Dem
ocrats into the Republican party un
der the disguise of “commercial De
mocracy. You know the result of
my coming.
I am here today in response to an
invitation signed by two or three
hundred of you asking me to discuss
Temperance, Prohibition, Dispensary
and License, as you are to pass on
that at the next election. There is
some difference of opinion as to
whether I have any business here.
There are some people who are fl ; s-
posed to think that I am a meddler:
that I am interfering with a “purely
local matter’’ with which I have no
business and that I ought not to b
here. I want to say in regard to that
that, when you elected me governor
you did not rob me of the right of a
citizen to discuss any question any
where, and when you sent me to
Washington as your representative in
the 1 nited States Senate | was and
am still a Pouth Carolinian and ‘till:-
tax payer, and more than that I am
still your servant. CCheors). At
least I leel that way and try to do my
duty in the national hall and I tried
to do my duty in the governor’s of
fice. The question is, why did you
ark me to come? There is a differ
ehce of opinion as to why. Who was
Instrumental in inviting me here”
To give you my reason for saying
some things I intend to say, I will
read from the News and Courier of
Thursday last, a communication from
this Hi . or town, which is not signed
(The Senator then read the article
which was in effect as follows:
That Senator Til^nan was coming' to
Gaffney to interfere in a local matter
and crack the whip of a boss over the
boys and make them line up for the
dispensary against even their conscl
entlqiui*«cruples). Now I complain of
that manner of treating this meeting
as far as I am concerned because
first, 1 am called the boss and I have
no desire to crack a whip over you
and I object to it most because of the
fact that this man, whoever he may
he, has so little respect for you, so
little comprehension of your natural
capacity, of your manly self respect,
that he declares that you will obey
the crack of the whip and fall into
line and even vote against your con
sciences and your better judgment.
What sort of mangy cur dogs does he
take you to be, men of Cherokee?
Where in South Carolina is there a
county which has within its bounds a
lot of slavish, ignorant, debased and
cowardly citizens who obey me?
This is the old cry that used to come
from way back; that you were a lot
of fools who followed me obediently
and that I had to only get out and
crack my whip and that you would
follow and do my bidding.
There is another little clipping, or
rather editorial, from one of your
county papers to which I want to ask
you to listen while I read It. (Senator
Tillman then read from an editorial
in the Gaffney Ledger, whch was to
the effect that he had complained of
Senator Hampton coming here in
1890 to interfere in a local State af
fair and that his coming to Chero
kee was very nuich out of place).
Is it out of place? Well that is a
matter of opinion. I have already
said you put me in the responsible
position which I now occupy but you
did not take from me every right I
have in my State and this county, and
I want to ask you, what position
would I occupy if I was so much of a
politician, so afraid of making ene
mies, so cowardly that 1 would de
cline to accept your invitation to
come here and discuss a great public
question in which we are all Inter
ested, when two or three hundred
citizens ask me to discuss the ques
tion calmly and dispassionately
without any fear but merely to please
you. I say, what sort of a cowardly
dog would I be if I had said I am too
busy or the circumstances are such
that I cannot accept. I would not
have long retained your respect or
good will. I certainly yould not de
serve to retain it at all if I was so
low and contemptible as thht. There
is another fling here that I will men-
thm. He speaks of Senator Hampton
coming here in 1890. Is there any
analogy in the conditions? Senator
Hampton left his seat in the Senate
and came to South Carolina when
there was a very heated campaign on
for the office of governor. He spoke
from the same platform with the can
didates and lent all his influence in
behalf of one man against another,
and there is no analogy between that
case oi.d this at all. This is not a
personal matter; this is a matter of
principle. You are to vote on a meas
ure. As both of your papers are
lined up on one side and you have no
advocate, is it not natural that I am
glad to come here, and is it not my
duty to come? You all know I would
not presume to come here to tell you
all what to do. You would ride me
on a rail *f I were to be so insolent
as to occupy the attitude of a boss.
I came here to give you such ideas
in regard to this great subject as
might enable you to judge of it and
judge intelligently. I want to say-
now, that after you have heard this
question from mo and from any other
who may choose to speak from this
i tand today who wishes to argue
from the other side, I will Hp most
happy to hear from him before you
take your action. I am not here to
bamboozle or honeyfuggle, and while
* s * or you to determine
the dispensary may need changes
whether you want this system to con
tinue. It is your right to kick it out.
I believe in legal self government, but
I don t believe in two newspapers re
fusing to print an article not in ac
cord with their views.
I understand an article was placed
in the hands of one of these newspa
pers and they refused to print it
Mr. DeCamp: They didn’t send it
to me.
Mr. Parrott: We did not refuse to
print any article.
Senator Tillman: I will ask the
man who brought that paper to me to
please rise. (A man arose in ihe
back of the house). (Cheers). The
man stated that the paper was placed
with the paper edited by the Messrs.
Parrott and was signed by G. B. Dan-
Pa rrott: I have the article,
t Laughter and cheers and shouts for
1 illman).
I illman: Wait a moment if I was
mistaken I want to take it hack.
I anott: I have the article on hand
to he published as soon as we can do
so. The article will appear as soon
as we have time to print it
Senator Tillman: Will it appear
before the election?
Parrott: Yes, sir.
Senator Tillman: Ho says it will
»nnear before the election. That is
all right. 0
Parrott: My brother and I do all
| " wo , rk in office and we do not
bave time to set up all the matter
that, comes in at one time.
Senator Tillman: I am glad to
h " ar y < m ^at it is not true that
>oit refused to publish it.
Now I will try to justify myself for
'•oming here. I will always believe
-hat it was my duty to come. I will
always come when you call me be
cause you have always come when I
called for you. You all in the rear
there is room up here instead of the
lisle I want you to come up to the
• men corner because I am going to
breach tho gospel according to Till
man today. (Cheers). There is al
ways room for those who climb and
here is plenty of room down here
just want to speak something fur-
’ ier in reference to this local matter,
•bout the impropriety or indecency,
f 1 may use a stronger word, of my
com ng here to meddle in your affairs
but i h«v' haVen,t the 'invitation,
but I have a very good memory. I
remember that when you were con
sidering the advisability and wisdom
of cutting loose from the counties of
York, Union and Spartanburg to set
up for yourselves, that there was a
great difference of opinion as to how
the thing would go. The town of
Gaffney was very anxious to become
a county seat, and discussion was go
ing on as to whether it would add to
your taxes and compensate you for
the additional burdens by the advant
ages offered. And another invitation
just like the one I got last week came
to me eight years ago to come here
to express my opinion and advise
with my fellow citzens as to the wis
dom and advantages of establishing
Cherokee county, and I as very sure
that there was one man who signed
that petition who wrote one of those
editorial articles. (Cheers). When I
came here then, he thought it was the
proper thing. He did not say then as
he says now, that it was “out of
place.” I’ll bet if I had the list here
now I could find probably one hun
dred names of men who are now fly
blowing me on the side and telling
that I am coming here to whip you
boys into line and that you haven’t
manhood enough to resent it. It re
minds me of the old story that we
boys who were taught in the blue
back spelling book used to read.
There was a certain farmer who had
a fine steer, living neighbor to a
lawyer who had a bull, and the bull
killed the steer and the farmer went
to see the lawyer in reference to it,
and told the lawyer that most un
fortunate thing had occurred; that
his steer had killed the lawyer's bull
and the lawyer said: “Well, you are
liable for the killing of my bull and
I suppose you have come to pay for
it.” “Hold on,” said the farmer, “it
was your bull that killed my ox. I
made a mistake.” “Oh,” said the law
yer, “that makes a difference. We
will see about it.”
Very easy when the farmer was to
pay hjm, but different when it was
otherwise. It was all right when I
came here to discuss other matters
in which they are interested, but de
cidedly out of place for me to come
here and discuss temperance and the
dispensary law. So much by way of
preliminary.
As I told you, I was invited here to
discuss tho question of Temperance
Dispensary Law, Prohibition or Li
cense I am going to do it honestly
and frankly as I always* do every
thing. I started too late In life to
teach my tongue the trick of saying
one thing and meaning another
There is no one here who wants to
make this a personal issue, but I
want to invite any man who feels so
disposed to ask me questions, and I
will answer them if I can. I am here
for the truth as I see it. I may be in
error. There is nothing in this for
me in any shape, form or fashion ex
cept that I will feel when I get
through that I have done my duty
you can d T ° as your conscience
dictates after I get through. The
question of control of whiskey and
how to prevent the great evils which
trnm . thoughtfuI “an says result
from it and sometimes happen even
fam,1 y. or the evils of
liquor drinkng to excess. It is an is
sue that will never down because it
can never be settled according to the
conflicting opinions of the people in
terested It is going on in one form
ai ?°^ her ,n a thousand communi-
ties today They have tried prohi-
hit on in three States, and it has
faUed signally in stopping the sale
The h»rL? r t )reventn g drunkenness.
The barrooms are run open in the
and" R 80 1 am Informed^
ami it j 8 the same in Kansas City
Kansas, and while there are manv
small towns in the two States where
iquor is difficult to obtain the num-
hci of revenue licenses to sell liquor
meriV in ^M^ 6 ,T . ni,G(, States govern-
m< nt in Maine is more than double
ho licenses in South Carolina, both
"Ponsary and blind tiger. Maine has
w h a,,0n ' Whilfi in Ka nsas
h- ve th h G po P ula ton than we
t a, e m^r“ *'* mm
When I was in the campaign for
Eir-, ln ,892 - ll1 " l>ro
hi hit ion became a very burning on<
in several sections. The prohibit,, n
Moment started out to Inject that in
” u * oampalgn, hut a large majority
*>o pnjhihitionists were my friend
in i as the issue promised to make
things very complicated, it was fi
vb m ag , ree<1 t , ha ’ ft ,,ox sh '’»'d ho pro-
,l, e J al <>a<: h Democratic club in
which the question of prohibition or
icensc should be voted on. Prohibi
tton won by a majority of ten thous-
1 ' . votG landing 25,000 against
and d.,,000 fop prohibition, hut^there
wore more than 20,000 voters who did
Hnn th< *mselves on the ques
tion therefore, prohibition did not
receive a majority in the State. When
the legislature met the House of Rpe-
resentatives felt constrained to pass
a Prohibition law, a*d did pass
such a bill, but I suggested to the
Tn? a n° , n C> a,,v,8al,,ll( y of aubstlt.it
ng the dispensary law for the prohi
bition bill and the House accepted the
compromise. The word “dispensary”
was in the prohibition bill.- All ofthe
frame work of the present dispensary
law was In the prohibition bill |
only changed the title, struck out
some provisions and put in others and
provided for the dispensary system
having Iquor sold by the State
through its bonded officers with the
profit to go to tho people, rather than
having it sold by an individual with
poel et' ,nt g ° ,ng lnt ° hi8 own Private
J„ a ! ra,t(hnt 1 ,ia ' 1 BOmp thlng to do
with the dispensary law. but they had
already framed It and I simply put
the weatherboarding on when I took
t np and changed its character I
vo ? J ,Ud ^ ,Ulty - 80 far 1
until v Votodon thlH flvo and
w iL ? f?,/ 1 * t0 Chan « e 11 I am
willing to let it stand, and I still say
it is the best control of liquor the
question by human hands, and you
have to deal with matters rather as
they are than as you would like them
to he. Now the particular law giver
and man who deals with conditions as
they are and knows these conditions
clearly is the man who is best quali
fied to determine what shall be done
in governments. The man who holds
his head high and looks at the beauti
ful star and moves forward, with his
eyes on the ideal, does not see the pi-
falls which are about his feet. I try to
which are about his feet. I try to
live up to my ideal but I keep my
eyes on the ground so that I can see
where the pitfalls are. I am not here
to say anything about the prohibition
ary idea. If I felt that prohibition was
possible, I would vote the dispensary
law out, but I know the prohibition-
ary idea can not he carried out. The
question is, how will you handle this
demon of whiskey? The dispensary
system is a sale in the way that teach
es the people how to use it instead of
abusing it. There are people who hold
it is a crime to sell liquor except for
medicinal purposes. There are some
who go so far as to say it is a crime
to drink whiskey. I never saw it that
way. I had it out with the preachers
in 1900. The Methodist bishop down
here at Spartanburg called me a liar
right out in conference, and another
high muckamuck from the Baptist
church in Greenville preached a ser
mon and flayed^me alive almost, so I
went to the Bible which I had not
studied over much, but nowhere could
I find that it was a sin to
drink whiskey, or sell it. There was
one text, I don’t care to quote it,
whereas, there are a dozen or more
where men are told to drink, and in
stances are told in the lives of pro
phets where they drank.
Mr. Hickson: They didn’t have
any liquor in that time.
Sen. Tillman: Well they had some
thing that made them drunk for old
man Noah was made drunk. They
did not know how to distill whiskey
but they used the juice of the grape
and it made people drunk.
Mr. Hickson: Does the Bible jus
tify old Noah for getting drunk?
Sen. Tillman: I don’t say the Bible
justified it. A good many things are
done which the Bible doesn’t justify.
Gome up here, I want to shake your
hand. (Rev. Hickson comes tip on
rostrum, shakes hands with the Sen
ator and sits down). Well as I in
vited joint discussion when I got up
here, I had supposed if anything of
the sort was to come off there would
have been an understanding to that
effect but I invite the advocates of
those fight^ig the dispensary to come
? n . up '^ ^ ^ end here makes any
holes Ih mjr stockings, I simply want
two or three minutes to pick up the
stitches. Taking my view of prohibi
tion, I think I have made it clear
enough that it Is a little too high for
us. The old barroom idea is simply
an impossible thing, and I can’t con
ceive of how the people of South Car
olina will ever go back to the old
wanting it back again. I can’t con-
ceive of how the people of South Ca
rolina will ever go back to the old
scheme of selling —the barroom
with its cut glass glasses which would
doo7 y ° Ur b ° yS ,D through the hack
In 1890 when this issue was last
voted on, I asserted what appeared
to me to be a plain fact, that the
preachers and barkeepers were in
line together, the angels of light and
aUd^h 88 ' ° ne to have barrooms
and the other to have prohibition.
Are they together In this fight? I
don t know whether these men who
used to make money in the liquor
S nrnMMM n ° W thG heEd ,,ghtS ln
the prohibition crowd or not. I know
they are not on our side.
Let us find the truth and follow it.
If it leads to prohibition let’s have it,
or if it leads to the dispensary, let’s
have it. Now what are some of the
reasons and advantages why the dis
pensary is better than prohibition or
‘.cense? T,1G first thing it does, is
that it does away with the element of
personal profit. Honestly administer
ed as tho law was formed and as it is
now, there Is no chance for anv man
to make anything out of it individu
ally except his regular salary as dis
penser. clerk or constable, he cannot
get more honestly. Some men have
talked about its immorality The
newspapers keep it in stock. I think
hey have it run together with llno-
. i ,K \ i! n . ev , er rnadG an - v Pretentions
about Its being a great moral institu-
i on. I simply said when I formed it
nils is an improvement on the old svs-
° m with the ai#l of tho moral e!o-
ment in this State, we can enforce ft
to the letter and drive drunkenness
out of South Carolina as far as ii
could be driven by anybody. We did
not name It a great moral institution.
I have been misrepresented by men
who make me say things I never said
or thought of saying and then con
demned by the same men for having
said them.
Now instead of men selling liquor
for profit, they don’t sell it for profit
and the profit goes to the community.
Tho man who is a dispenser has
nothing to encourage him to sell con
trary to the law when he only gets
tils salary as fixed by the Stato
bontd, therefore has no personal in
terest in it. You can easily realize
1 bat it. has tho advantage over any
other scheme of handling whiskey.
I he greed of humanity and desire to
make money without regard to con- j
sequences or to tho women and chil-
dren who are made miserable by (lie
sale of tills stuff, encourages barkeep
ers to sell to minors and after dark.
They talk today about the State being
disgraced and that tho dispensary
money is blood money. When the
state permitted licenses to be Issued
• ml to receive money therefor, when
your town got its barroom licenses,
it. was as much an immorality as it is
to have the dispensary. There is no
difference in immorality. There is
one feature which the dispensary sys
tem has which the barroom has not.
It has destroyed the habit of treating,
destroyed the saying “Come on Bill or
John and get a drink,” and they would
all get a drink at one man’s expense,
and they would sit around and talk
about crops and one man would say,
“We have drunk that man’s whiskey,
let’s have another," and all would take
another drink and before they left the
larger part of them would be drunk.
Treating has been done away with by
the dispensary law and the man now
who wants to give his friend a drink
has to go around hack of the stable
and it doesn’t taste as good as it
would in one of those little cut glass
glasses. But say what you please,
treating has been killed practically
by the dispensary system. When the
law is honestly administered, there
IS no incentive to sell after nightfall,
as there was for a barkeeper to do.
These three are enough.
I recognize the right of newspapers
to criticize me. I don’t set myself up
as being above it, but I do object to
people putting words in. my mouth
which I never said and whaling me
over the head for having said them.
About two months ago, as I happened
to be going from Clemson College to
Washington, to get an officer detailed
to Clemson, newspaper men ran up to
me at Spartanburg and asked me
what about the Brice hill? I have
never been afraid to say my say about
anybody’s bill or anybody. I said it
seemed to me to be an attempt to as
sassinate the dispensary law. I did
say I did not see how any honest man
could vote for the Brice bill. For this
I have been severely criticised. If I
can make myself understood I do not
think anybody can accuse me of hav
ing insulted a large lot of people who
believed in it. I have been taught
that dishonesty is getting something
that doesn’t belong to you. What did
the Brice bill provide? Simply that
the dispensary may be voted out, and
no way Is provided for enforcing the
dispensary law in that county out of
that county’s funds. I will tell you
the truth straight and square, and
••Men a county wants a dispensary
kicked out it Is their right, but still
when the dispensaries In the other
counties that have disnensaries have
to send constables into this county
and make the other county defray the
expenses of enforcing the law, I say
it is dishonest and I believe it was
dishonest and I stick to it.
Well, I have very briefly given you
an outline of some of the fundamental
principles involved and I have also
endeavored to point out the reason
why the dispensary law is the best
system for handling whiskey.
(The Senator then made some ref
erence to the fact that he was often
misquoted, to which one of the edi
tors present said that he never mis-
represented the Senator but would
print his exact words).
Senator Tillman: You tell me you
are going to print what I say just
plain and fair. I have a gentleman
there who will furnish you with an
exact copy and I almost agree to set
up the type or pay some one else for
doing it as I want everybody to see
how much there is to your great
blowing on this subject. I tried to
get information from some of your
county officials as to the total amount
of expenditures for schools and taxes
paid, etc., but this is what I get:
(The Senator then proceeded to
read the statement which was turned
over to the stenographer, but which
has since been mislaid, and in com
menting on it said):
You don’t give me any supply bITi
and you don’t give me any state ment
asked for information which should
>e accessible to any citizen in this
town and that is what I got, therefore,
J cannot say anything as to what will’
he the result if the State officers have
this in revenue cut off.
Voice: I can tell you what the re-
cf‘ipts are from the dispensary.
Senator Tillman: I have got that.
You don’t get but $3,750 from tho dis
pensaries according to this state-'
merit, from October 1st, 1903 to Goto
her 1st, 1904. I got Jt from your
county treasurer. He was good
enough to prepare it for me, a clear
statement in regard to the countv
Now if you find the dispensary is such
a crime producer and such a machine
o wreck Mves and you want to pay
his additional amount to get rid of
and the additional taxes of over
u m 1 V” ,,ay for Gnff >rclng the pro
hibition, to get rid of the dlspensarv,
Jn , y0 !', r r - Kht ’ l,uf 1 08,1 your atten-
n U ] ,,1G fact that if you do you will
I'ave to ,,ay double your taxes for
county purposes, and those members
, fkG legislature who have probably
been elected on this Issue will go f ar ',.
to face with the issue, that they must
increase the levy and you must put
your hands In your iiockots and ma! >
this money good. Your school fund
will he reduced unless vmt make it
good to tin. amount of $3,774, and you
will rob your children of tin ir school
ng or tax yourself i„ order to make
it good It is all a matter you must
determine for yourself.
I have a deep interest in the dispen
sary law, first, because it gave me a*
governor more trouble than anything
I ever had anything to do with The
responsibility was or, me to enforce
the law as it was on the statute books
n id I Pledged myself that I would
close every bar in South Carolina and
would go the limit to see the law en-
mT m? nd ^ pGnf,,t y Imposed, rnd I
u'' Or0 ,nVG • , '*en men who were
so l tie and contemptible, who, lost
lo nl sense of decency, without a
scintilla of evidence, have charged me
whh lining my pockets. F know my
fellow citizens have never given any
credit to it, for they have elected me
to the Senate twice since these tdan
dors wbre started. But the altuatlon
in the State now la certainly one that
is most unsatisfactory. The law as
it was written I tried to enforce. I
had the law written, as far as I could
convert the legislature to my ideas,
as I deemed best, and the first session
after it went into effect in 1893, we
amended It. As Loon as I left' the
governor’s office, hardly three or six
months had elapsed before they
changed it. They took the system out
of the control of the State Board,
composed of the governor, attorney
general and comptroller general, and
they put the power of directing, con
trolling and purchasing whiskey in
charge of a State board. That they
have changed twice. Now the board
is elected by the general assembly
and approved by the governor. I
wouldn’t have come here but to give
you my opinion, and I want to labor
with my friends to take hold of this
law and key it up, and have the ma
chine run as a temperance measure
rather than as a money making ma
chine. It was never intended to be a
machine for money making or for
profit. They say it is being whispered
everywhere that certain members of
the board had nothing when they were
appointed but that now they have
plenty. Another man had a mort
gage on everything he had when he
was appointed, but the other day he
died and left his family a lot of
money. They don’t spare even the
dead in their vile slanders. Why is
this situation? Because the legisla
ture has put it in their power. A man
is elected on a salary of $400 as a
member of the board of control and
it is said he makes $2,500 or $3,000
per year. Mind you, claiming for my
self that I was honest in every par
ticular, I bought whiskey as
best as I could, and never touched
any of the State’s money. I give these
men who are in charge the credit of
being just as honest as I was, and
those men who charged me with be
ing dishonest are charging the men
now in with being dishonest, and that
because these men can get rebates,
they have gotten them. If the ques
tion is as to whether it is now possi-
ble, I say of course it is, as long as
the present system of purchasing
whiskey by the month is continued,
and as long as there are a dozen men
going every month to sell these goods,
as long as there is a lot of whiskey
piled up, which does not come up to
the proof, which cannot be sold, you
will hear stories that this man or that
man is making great sums of money
out of it. They charged me with hav
ing stolen because I could have stolen.
The reason they charged me is
because they would have stolen if
they had had the chance. When the
dispensary law was first enacted we
had to start out on $50,000, and we
• ()Uy on cred lt do business.
$50,000 would not have bought enough
whiskey to have given each of the
men of South Carolina a drink apiece.
I & m ready to quit the defense of the
dispensary law when you can say
truthfully it is a political machine.
It was not a political machine in my
hands. The governing board used to
be the governor, the comptroller gen
eral and the attorney general, but
they said we must not allow that to
go on, because that puts too much
power in the hands of the governor
I tried to enforce this law, and I
sternly repressed any effort to mix in
politics. I never had any constables
with me on my campaign when I ran
for senator. One or two did start out
but I “cussed” them and told them
to attend to their duties as consta
bles. No man should be allowed to
have the appointment of commission
er unless he has a clean record. No
such man has had it as far as I
know. The salary of the State liquor
commissioner has been increased
from $1,800 to $3,000 and he is re
quired to give a bond of $75,000, I
think It Is. to insure the faithful dis
charge of his duties, but the commis
sioner is not allowed to have anything
to do with the whiskey until It is
bought, and he merely keeps tho
books and attends to the business de
tails. My Idea, and f have spoken
|)i ivately to the governors once or
twice, was to make a contract by the
\eai with men who have honesty and
character and who distill their own
liquor and let them furnish the State
of South Carolina with all we require
tor the year, and let the commission’s
chemist examine it and see if it Is
of the proper grade. Ii you don’t tni'-t
the governor, attorney general and
comptroller general, and the other
Slate* officers, if they are not enough,
tmt anybody on whom you can trust
Fbit my friend Mr. Hickson on. Put
.inj set of men In charge who can
command the confidence* and respe*cf
of the whole people, hut lake* the eli e-
pensary out of politics and ste>p the
vile slanders that are destroying all
confidence. You can he'ar them c'"
H'liially saying this man Is getting
rich and thal rebates are paiel fe» com
missioners fejr buying their goods. I
have- shown you that this can he* stop,
nod by huving your early supply from
"•mo great firm, which will furnl h
tin* Si:*.(■* certain grades e»f whiskeys
and that thc;«e whiskeys may he pure,
let it give bond for $500,000 that th v
will come up to the standard on tbe
contract. You can put a< many men
on,that hoard as you please. |f you
can’t trust the present hoard put on
•\ supreme court justice, or all of
them. Put on anybody and got a
hoard above suspicion. When I was
in charge I had four grades of whis
key, IX, 2X, 2X, and 4X. They had
the palmetto tree on them. The o
goody, goody people, many of th *m
advocates of license, have gone on
first and stated it was a disgrace to
have the State’s emblem on the b<>t
tie. There was no chance for the lo
cal dispenser to make money us the
iMdtles were all alike, but they charge
now that Hie agents of these several
firms go around to the local dlsM , »n-
saries and say “Every time you sell a
case of our goods w« will give you
fifty cents,” so they charge that local